Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) Stock Position Lowered by Polaris Capital Management LLC

Polaris Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Linde plc (NASDAQ:LIN) by 20.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 322,676 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 81,360 shares during the quarter. Linde accounts for about 6.5% of Polaris Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Linde worth $135,095,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Linde during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Linde during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in shares of Linde by 144.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 71 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Linde during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Linde in the third quarter worth $43,000. 82.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LIN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Linde from $520.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Linde in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Linde from $490.00 to $480.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen raised Linde from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $480.00 to $515.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Linde from $477.00 to $507.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Linde has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $501.82.

Linde Stock Performance

Shares of LIN opened at $460.86 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $219.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Linde plc has a 12 month low of $410.69 and a 12 month high of $487.49. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $434.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $453.66.

Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.93 by $0.04. Linde had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 18.71%. Research analysts anticipate that Linde plc will post 16.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Linde

In other Linde news, VP David P. Strauss sold 2,218 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.35, for a total transaction of $963,388.30. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 25,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,260,958.10. This represents a 7.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Guillermo Bichara sold 4,385 shares of Linde stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.73, for a total transaction of $2,020,301.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 22,776 shares in the company, valued at $10,493,586.48. This represents a 16.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Linde Profile

Linde plc operates as an industrial gas company in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and South Pacific. It offers atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, and rare gases; and process gases, such as carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen, electronic gases, specialty gases, and acetylene.